ESTEEM’s annual spring break trek to Silicon Valley had a unique stop on the whirlwind tour of the startup mecca. But in an interesting twist, this stop required students to wear socks.
Socks?
The dress code request came from one of Silicon Valley’s most famous gurus, Steve Blank, who co-founded the Lean Startup Movement in the early 2000s and whose experiential learning-based Lean Launchpad Class initially taught at Stanford University, changed the way entrepreneurship is taught. Blank had agreed to meet with a small group of ESTEEM students at the request of Neil Kane, director of ESTEEM Curriculum. The two had worked together in the development of the National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps (I-Corps), an adaptation of Lean Startups for scientists.
“I met Steve in 2011 when I was a mentor in the inaugural National Science Foundation I-Corps cohort at Stanford University. We were both invited to testify to Congress on I-Corps in 2012, and we’ve stayed in contact,” Kane explains. “When planning this year’s trip to Silicon Valley, I thought it would be incredible to connect ESTEEM students to Steve.”
Incredible indeed. Few people live up to their legends, but Blank is one who surpasses his. In addition to co-founding the Lean Startup Movement, Blank has been involved with nine startups, authored or co-authored four books on entrepreneurship, and named by the Harvard Business Review as “One of 12 Masters of Innovation.”
Although still teaching at Stanford, the 70-year-old Blank spends much of his time at home, preferring his ocean-front ranch in Pescadero, California, to Sunnyvale. However, his attention was piqued when Kane asked if he would address the Notre Dame ESTEEM students.
“I’m overwhelmed with requests from students to visit and meet. What inspired me to accept the invitation from the Notre Dame students was the visit was hosted by Neil. I had worked with Neil early on in the development of I- Corps, and anything he was associated with I want to be part of,” Blank said.
Blank had two requests: the Notre Dame students had to come to his home. Although his ranch is only 20 miles from Sunnyvale, by car it’s a 50-mile drive that can take up to an hour-and-a-half. The second request involved no shoes in his house, only socks.
Kane readily agreed and lined up a cadre of six students who were familiar with Blank’s work and excited to meet and talk with Blank, but who had no idea just how experiential the visit would be.
Daniel Johnson, who earned a Biomedical Engineering degree from the University of Galway in Ireland, was among those selected to meet Blank. “I was very excited but didn’t know what to expect. We were told we’d go to breakfast to meet him, but there was a big air of mystery. He wasn’t at the café where we had breakfast. Instead, we got on the van and took a long journey,” Johnson says.
There was another bit of trickery involved once the student arrived at Blank’s 100-acre-plus estate. “We were told to look for a fork in the road,” continues Johnson, “and there it was, a sculpture of a fork in the road.”
The students were surprised to find themselves at Blank’s personal home. After removing their shoes, they were taken to an expansive living room with glass walls revealing the Pacific Ocean. Blank kicked off the discussion by asking the students to introduce themselves and share their impressions of Silicon Valley. From there, Blank encouraged them to ask him questions.
Wanting a more personal side of Blank, Robbie Matthews, who earned his undergraduate degree in Physics and Applied Math at University College Cork in Ireland, asked him about his biggest failure. “Steve explained how he’d been fired from a role, and while it seemed like a failure then, he came to realize it had been time to go to the next role. The failure was more of a turning point. It was a human side of himself that we didn’t expect,” Matthews says.
What impressed Laura Hession, who earned a Biotechnology degree from the University of Galway, was the balance Blank was able to achieve in life despite the enormous personal sacrifices made for his career. “He emphasized the importance of his family. Even though he’s written so many books and done so many startups, he always made time for family and children, tucking his kids in bed at night. That was really refreshing and admirable.”
The students were also excited about Blank’s predictions about artificial intelligence (AI)and how it will impact startups, particularly in the area of customer discovery, in the future. Matthews, who is currently working with biotech startup Ochre Bio, is enthusiastic about the potential paradigm shift that will result from the use of AI and ChatGPT.
“Steve discussed how AI and ChatGPT will allow companies to test ideas more quickly using artificial customers. Automation will accelerate product market fit by identifying the best path forward. This will reduce time to market and allow companies to grow faster. This is critical in biotech, which traditionally has a long development process,” Matthews says.
For his part, Blank made sure to cover these points. “The first is entrepreneurship is a calling not a job. The second, founders are closer to artists than any other profession. They see things and hear things that others don't. And third is that if they pursue an entrepreneurial career either in a startup or inside of large company, it's the most exciting adventure you could have and get paid for it.”
After the event, students and Blank were equally pleased with the event. Johnson termed the event surreal. “It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Just meeting him was inspirational.” Super inspired by the discussion, Hession says she would like to remain in the United States after graduation to work in biotech.
Said Blank, “I always have a great time with students. I learn something new by their questions, by their interests, and by the changes in the social and cultural environment that they now operate in. It's why I've been teaching after retiring two decades ago.”
And with that, it was shoes on and away!